From Fossils to Foundations: How 50,000 Tasmanians Can Power a New Economy

By Dr. Emily Samuels Ballantyne
Founder, Magical Farm Tasmania & Regen Era Design

Tasmania stands at a crossroads. We can continue with top-down energy projects driven by global investors, where profits are extracted and shipped offshore. Or we can plant something new. A foundational economy rooted in care, reciprocity, and community ownership. One that treats energy not as a speculative commodity, but as a public good essential, regenerative, and locally stewarded. Which is already much of a trend in Tasmania as they have publicly owned Hydro. 

Imagine this: 50,000 Tasmanians just 10% of our population voluntarily redirecting a small portion of their superannuation (say $20,000 each) into a shared public interest fund. That’s $1 billion in capital. A Tasmanian Foundational Fund.

Rather than propping up distant fossil fuel conglomerates or speculative offshore wind exporters, this fund would be locally governed, investing directly in the infrastructure that sustains our lives: community-owned renewable energy, affordable eco-housing, regional food systems, and climate-ready health and care hubs. The spatial planning would be created by the board which would be much more sensitive to community needs. 

This scenario is practically possible and t’s financially sound. Australian super funds already allocate billions to infrastructure. Between 2012 and 2022, the share of infrastructure investment in super portfolios more than doubled, from 3% to 8%, totaling over $165 billion nationally (ASFA, 2023).

Locally, Tasmania’s Retirement Benefits Fund manages over $2.2 billion, delivering consistent returns around 6–7% annually more than enough to support modest, regenerative investments with real impact.

The foundational approach recognises that care, energy, and place are not side projects they are the backbone of a just economy. It calls on us to stop waiting for top-down solutions and instead activate the resources we already hold collectively.

By turning even a portion of our superannuation into a living commons rooted in ethical governance and local ecological intelligence we can break free from old extractive paradigms. We can become the co-creators of a resilient, intergenerational economy.

Let’s not become the Battery of the Nation for someone else’s profit. Let’s become the Living Heart of a Regenerative Commonwealth.